


Say My Name

by celestialswrites



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Just so much love, ending of GD route spoilers, my take on how the proposal went
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-15
Updated: 2019-08-15
Packaged: 2020-09-01 16:56:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,744
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20261422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celestialswrites/pseuds/celestialswrites
Summary: When Claude sees Byleth at the Goddess Tower after the war, she hoped that their true feelings would finally come out. But she never expected a certain six letter word to be said.





	Say My Name

The years felt like decades where Byleth couldn’t hold Claude the way she wanted to. Look at him the way she wanted to. Kiss him the way she wanted to. All this time she loved him, but never could put her finger on what the term really was. She felt so many emotions with just a glance into his eyes, but now she finally knew. How could she have been so stupid? Why couldn’t she have figured it out sooner? None of that mattered though, as the war was much too time consuming to focus on trivial things. 

And yet, Claude was the least trivial thing in Byleth’s life. He was, in fact, the most important person in her life. 

“Thought I’d find you up here.”

Claude’s voice, in any other situation, would have startled her, but instead she felt relaxed by it, her shoulders releasing in tension and a hint of a smile twitching at her lips. 

Turning her head to the side, she noticed Claude step up to the balcony she was overlooking. The Goddess Tower was one of the most peaceful places to stand and think in the Monastery. She’d come up here multiple times, the place meaning something more to her ever since that night after her and Claude’s first dance. 

The way his hand had grabbed ahold of hers, a wink flashing across his eye, and before she could think of an excuse he had swept her across the dance floor. Byleth was pleasantly surprised to find Claude a good dancer, but being a Mercenary all her life with zero dancing experience made her face burn red, head tilting away from prying eyes. 

“Hey, don’t worry,” Claude said with a slight chuckle, “You’re doing fine. I got ya.”

And he did have her. He had all of her in the palm of his hand, twisted around his finger. His hand held the small of her back, guiding her gently in circles. Byleth tried to keep her eyes at a decent level, but she couldn’t help glance at her feet from time to time to make sure she wasn’t stepping on his toes. 

Somehow, they made it work, and it was one of the best nights of her life. Joy wasn’t something that came often in her mundane life. But Claude and the rest of her wonderful students gave her life meaning. 

“Beautiful sky tonight,” Claude commented, leaning over just as she was. Byleth hummed in agreement, eyes avoiding his gaze. What the hell made her so nervous? She has always been able to act calm in front of him. But this felt...different. 

“I feel like something’s on your mind. Penny for your thoughts?” He asked, turning to face her. He was always good at that, being a thoughtful listener that took your every word to memory. Once, Byleth commented on a nice bracelet at the market (she really just picked it up and somehow Claude knew she liked it), and for her birthday at her first year at the Monastery he’d given it to her. 

Byleth ignored her stammering heart, looking over his way. It still surprised her how much he had changed over 5 years. If she were to have spent that time with him, she probably wouldn’t even notice. But being absent for all that time, his younger self still felt familiar in her mind. 

“I guess I’m surprised we actually won,” Byleth commented. 

Claude placed a hand on his chest, jaw dropping dramatically. “You mean to tell me you thought my plan would fail, and I’d get you all killed? Touché, Teach.”

_Teach_...what an old nickname. Why did he still call her that? He had never called her by her first name, which was something she desired to hear slip off his tongue deep down. 

Byleth shook her head, rolling her eyes. “I only mean that this dream felt light years away. And yet...”

“And yet...” Claude added on, tilting his head. 

The way he smiled at her, she couldn’t help but give a little of her own back.

“Did I ever tell you how much I admire your smile?” Claude asked cheekily. 

“Yes, actually...many moons ago when we’d just won a battle.”

Claude nods, clearly impressed by her memory. “I remember well.”

The air fell silent. Byleth’s lips parted multiple times, but her mouth shut each time, not knowing what to say. 

_Tell him. Tell him. Tell him. _

She could practically hear Sothis scoffing at her in the back of her head. She’d know what to do. 

“Cl-“

“Byleth...”

The woman in question sucked in a breath, cheeks turning red. She couldn’t believe he said it. Her chest tightened, heart ramming against her rib cage. Even on the battlefield, she’d never been this nervous. Why couldn’t she control her body and emotions?

“You said...” Byleth’s words failed her, but he picked the sentence back up. 

“Your name, yes. I’ve...wanted to call you that for a long time, actually. Just didn’t know when the time was right.”

Byleth waited with baited breath, watching as he kept his gaze on her, even though worry swam through his eyes. His gloved hands reached for hers, holding them so gently in his palms. His touch, even through fabric, sent shivers up her arms. They were so close now, she could feel his deep breathing. 

“You know how much you mean to me, and with the war being over, I want to finally make my dreams come true—as cheesy as it sounds. But I only just realized...I don’t want my dreams unless you’re in them.”

Byleth listened closely, biting her lip to hide the smile creeping at her lips. Damn, this man knew how to make her crumble. 

“I’ve known you for only a fraction of my life, and yet it feels as though I’ve known you forever. I’ve waited for you to come into my life, and that moment...that moment when I knew you did it, that you killed Nemesis, and the war was over, I just wanted to run up to you and take you in my arms then and there.”

A moment of stunned silence filled the air, leading Claude’s hands to shake with nervousness. “I just hope that...you feel the same way.”

Byleth came back from the clouds, nodding her head vigorously. “Yes...yes I do!”

The man holding her hands let out a sigh of relief, about to speak again before Byleth interrupted. “Claude...being a mercenary was my entire life. All I knew was bloodshed, and work, and survival. Then you took me in, accepted me as a professor even though I’m highly under qualified (Claude let out a small laugh at that), and made me realize what living truly meant. I found a family, and I found l-“

Byleth cut her sentence short, not wanting to say the word out loud. Not in a million years did she believe she would experience this feeling, but it was now so familiar she never wanted to forget it.

“You found what?” Claude practically whispered, desperate to hear Byleth confirm his feelings. 

But instead of words, she used her actions, pulling his face towards hers and smashing her lips against his. Claude would’ve thought he’d be in shock, but instead he melted right into her, hands slithering around her waist, pulling her closer. 

With no kissing experience, they weren’t sure how this would go, but their lips seems to meld together and move in a singular motion, as if they were made to be together. Claude tilted his head, deepening the kiss. Byleth’s hands ran through his soft hair, pulling at the strands gently to give her more access. 

After her breathing became short, Byleth drew back, breaking the string of saliva connected between them. With heavy breaths, Claude leaned his forehead against hers, still holding her close. His arms, wrapped around her so securely, were the safest place in all of Fódlan. 

“God, I love you. I love you Byleth, so much.” Claude peppered kisses across her cheek and down her neck.

“I love you too, Claude,” Byleth gasped, head resting in the crook of his neck. The way he praised her with his lips made her knees go weak, but he made sure she wouldn’t fall. 

Before she realized it, Claude had released her from his grip, holding out a familiar ring in his palm. 

It was her mother’s ring. 

Byleth blinked at the object. “Where...how-“

“A little birdie told me you had your mother’s ring lying around, so I did a little snooping...hope you don’t mind-“

“Yes.”

Claude stared at her, eyes widening. “What?”

“Yes, I’ll marry you.”

“Wait! I-I didn’t even get to ask you.”

Byleth shook her head. “Okay, sorry, go ahead.”

Claude has only adoration in his eyes, even if his love was impatient sometimes. “Byleth, will you take this ring and be my wife to rule over Fódlan?”

Byleth finally let the smile slip, teeth glistening against the late day sun. But then her smile fell, and she tapped her chin in thought. “I don’t know, let me think about it. That’s a lot of responsibility.”

“You little-“ Claude cut his sentence short, grabbing her hand and shoving the ring on. A playful smirk stretched across his lips. “There, now you’re locked in forever.”

Byleth let out a light laugh, Claude’s chest warming at the sound. In that moment, he realized he’d never heard her laugh before. He wanted to hear it again and again and again. 

Byleth held her hand out, admiring the shine of the stone. “Yes, of course I’ll marry you, Claude.”

Finally, those were the words he’d waited to hear for so long, even if he didn’t realize it. In an instant, they held each other in their embrace again, Claude’s hand gently holding her head against his chest, Byleth’s hand gripping the fabric on his jacket.

She squeezed hard, afraid that if she let go, he’d turn to dust between her fingertips. 

“Byleth...I like the sound of it,” she heard him mumble into her hair. 

“Say it again,” Byleth replies with a smirk.

“Byleth...”

He repeated her name over and over again, as Claude continued to whisper sweet nothings into her ear like a melody.

Little did she know, he’d say her name thousands of more times, and she’d smile at the sound of his voice saying those six letters every single time.


End file.
